Self-care is more than a relaxation routine or day of pampering you enjoy at home — it’s also important to focus on self-care in a professional setting. When you create a culture of self-care at work, you, your colleagues, your employees and your organization win. Professionals who are happier and more rested are often more creative, more productive and more engaged than those who seldom take time to care for themselves.
Writer Elisa Silverman says it’s important for leaders to look at culture as well as revenue when setting and reviewing objectives. If you could use some pointers on how to prioritize self-care within your company, read on. We share five ideas from Silverman in this issue of Promotional Consultant Today.
1. Insist on PTO. If you manage a team of people, make sure they don’t let their vacation days go unused. The greatest self-care a company can offer employees is ensuring they step away from their work, Silverman says. This doesn’t mean offering unlimited PTO or year-long paid sabbaticals. Instead, you might remind your team members how much PTO time they have remaining and help them map out a plan for when they’ll use it.
2. Let people mess up. This goes a long way at creating a culture of self-care because it gives people room to share their ideas and take calculated risks. They won’t feel unnecessary stress about making the wrong decision because they have space for making mistakes. Silverman suggests starting postmortem meetings assuming that employees have the company’s best interests at heart, rather than placing blame.
3. Respect others’ time. As a leader, you can do this in many ways, from limiting the number of meetings you schedule to setting communication boundaries. For example, you might discourage your team from sending late-night emails. According to Silverman, valuing people’s time shows that you value them as individuals, not just as employees.
4. Focus on physical health. When people feel their best, they can perform their best. From a work standpoint, consider stocking the breakroom with healthy snacks or encouraging your employees to get away from their desks and walk more often. Silverman says that if there’s space and interest, you could even start a walking club or offer yoga or meditation classes.
5. Ask employees what they want. To create a culture of self-care, it’s important to stay mindful about what self-care means to your team. Silverman recommends asking employees about the attitudes, habits and other factors they feel your company lacks. Then, you can work with them to find ideas on how to build the kind of self-care culture they’d like to see.
Self-care has evolved from taking an occasional “mental health day” to being intentional about boundaries, expectations and commitments at work. Whether you work for yourself or you manage a team of sales professionals, consider implementing the ideas above to create a healthy culture of self-care.
Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: Elisa Silverman is a writer who contributes articles for the 15five blog.
